10th-ranked Marietta softball remains undefeated in the OAC with sweep at Ohio Northern
Pioneers's five-run seventh caps comeback in game two

Apr. 1, 2006
ADA, Ohio — A five-run seventh inning kept the tenth-ranked Marietta College softball team's remarkable season rolling Saturday (Apr. 1) at Ohio Northern. The Pioneers rolled to a 9-0, six-inning victory in the opener, but trailed 5-3 heading into their final at-bat of game two. Marietta's offense, which has come up with the big inning over and over this season, did it again against Ohio Northern by exploding for five runs on six hits to stun the host Polar Bears 8-5 and complete the sweep.

With the victories, Marietta extends its win streak to 16 games and improves to 19-1 overall and 4-0 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. Ohio Northern fell to 5-11, 0-4 in league play.

All season long, the Pioneers' offense has been able to score runs early and Saturday was no exception. In game one, Marietta jumped out to a 5-0 lead after the first inning.

Sophomore Brandy Jacob led off with a single. Freshman Emily McComb reached on a fielder's choice. Jacob was safe at second on the play. Junior Jenny Carroll singled to load the bases and extend her hit streak to 12 games, which broke the school record. Junior Lindsey Romick then drew a walk to pick up a RBI and Marietta led 1-0. The next hitter, freshman Nikki Driscoll, singled up the middle to score Carroll and McComb. Freshman Christina DeMoss then added a suicide squeeze to score Romick, and senior Sue Schwamberger followed with a RBI single to center to plate Driscoll with the fifth run of the frame.

Marietta added a pair of runs in the second inning, when Driscoll had another big hit, a two-run single.

The Pioneers scored two more runs in the sixth to bring the run-rule into play. DeMoss and pinch hitter Jen Husken picked up RBIs in the inning.

Driscoll finished 3-for-3 with two runs scored and four RBI, while Carroll and Schwamberger each had a pair of hits in the win. Marietta had ten hits in the game.

While the Marietta offense was running on all cylinders, junior Kristen Quintana held Ohio Northern to just two hits, both by Lynda Thomas. Quintana struck out 12 and walked one to improve to 10-1 on the year.

Marietta again jumped out in the first inning with three runs, but this time Ohio Northern matched them with three runs of its own and added two more in the fourth to take a 5-3 lead.

The Polar Bears got to DeMoss, the Pioneers' game two starter, for five runs on five hits, including two home runs, in 3.1 innings, before Quintana replaced her in the fourth and shut down their offense the rest of the way.

Quintana's relief performance, which included seven strikeouts and 3.2 innings of hitless ball, kept Marietta in the game until its offense broke out for five runs in the seventh. Jacob and junior Lindsey Romick's two-run singles sandwiched a Carroll RBI single and the Pioneers were able to escape with an 8-5 victory.

Quintana picked up the win, her second of the day, to move to 11-1. Marietta finished with 11 hits in the nightcap. Romick went 3-for-4 with two RBI, while the Pioneers' first three hitters — Jacob, McComb and Carroll — each had two hits. Carroll extended her record setting hit streak to 13 games with a single in the sixth.

Marietta will look to avoid a letdown when it returns home to take on Washington & Jefferson (Pa.) Sunday (Apr. 2) at 1 p.m. at Marietta Field. The Presidents are 9-8 on the season after splitting a doubleheader with Denison today.